Number board



l A. I. GAY. NUMBER BOARD.-

APPLICATION FILED nJAN. 3| l9g0.

Patented Apr. 25,1922'.

ALBERT'T. GAY, on AUBURM'QMAINE.

v Nuivinnn BOARD. 1

T 0 (/ZZ fic/,20m t may concern.; 'ly' y A y Be it y*known that Aiiniiiir 1`. .(irAY,4 acit- Zen of the"y United States lof Americaa resid;- ing at Auburn, in the countyof Androscoggin and State of Maine7 hasv invented new anduseiul Improvements in Number Boards, of which the following is a' specification i l rI Yhe object of the invention isf to provide a number board or designating apparatus for l use in factories or in connection with .cab -stands and any other concerns requiring in the systematic transaction of busines's'the indicationof the proper order ory succession in which the men or vehicles shall take up certain duties or respond to calls as for eX- ample in the case of bell-boys and messenger boys in hotels and telegraph `oliices wherein after a member of the force has performed a certain duty or carried a message he takes his place at the bottom of the list and does not again Vreceive a commission until those who precede him` in the order of succession have received calls or obtainedcommissions,

and to this endl thevinvention consists ina vconstruction and combination of A'partsfotf y which a lpreferred embodiment is shown Vin the drawing, wherein: y 1 Figure 1 is a front view of the device. Figure 2 is a vertical sectional view of the same. Y f Figure 3 is a transverse'section `on the plane indicated b-y the line 3,-3015 Figure Figure 4 is a similar section on the plane indicated by the line 4 4 of Figure 1. Y

In the illustrated embodiment of the de-V vice whichvis especially adapted for use in factories; and oiices the preferably upright board or casing 10 is supported by' ahollow base 11 in which is arranged a drawer lorother suitable receptacle 12, said casing having a guide or runway 13 open at its upper end to form an inlet as indicated at 14 and communicating at its lower end by a suitabley Youtlet 15 with the drawer or receptacle 12.

This guide or runway is adapted to receive cards blocks or other numberedor disv tinguishably designated objects 16 which `may be introduced at the inlet end of the guide or runway and are designed to drop by y gravity to a position ot rest with thelowermost object in Contact with a seat 17 which is formed by an offset between the body Vportion of the guide or runway and the outlet` 15. he members or other designating*chainV acters on these objects are displayed through Patentei'A'1951x225, 1922-. ,Appiicatibnfeieareentry 3,; i920.: 'semina eiegzi'g] i i i UNITED sTAresfPATENT-1,0FFICEf-f van inspection slotf18' inthefront of. the cas-A ing and retaining meansv Suchas spring ldogs '1Q-Erf@ Merged new the uppers@ ofthe .guide to permit ofthe' introduction n, of thev '0b-Tem" While' preventing' withdrawal ui,

wardly through said upperend tok guard against thepossibility'oi the cards,wblocks or'yother objectsbeing changed infthe'order of theirappearancfein theA guijde.- Similarly in the. lower or'outlet end of thelguideor runway 'a retaining dog -20is employed to Prevent s Acardgir block from ib'heintro*v 1 vi vdfuc'edfint'o tliejguide or runway from'fbelow and thus Vchanging the order ordisturbingl the succession designated by the objects.k

The designation of the card or block at.

the bottom of the body portion of the guide or runway is supposed vto indicate the person'or vehicle which is neXt'in the order of j Y sequence to receive a commission or perform' a duty or respond to ak call, andin the construction asillustratedv the designation of. such person or vehicle is Number 2, with the Aarran'gement of cards shown indicating that those numbered. 4 and 10 are succes-y sively to followf the :displacement1 of they block v2 when the perso-n or fvehicle represented'by ysaid blockhas received a commis-Y sion or call.v Y shown in the drawingFigure y1- is supposed The Iblock numbered asto represent the person or vehicle who has last received a commission and when the call r l for such'person orV Vehicle comes, the lowerinto*discharging'position or into alignment at one sideot the -.display slot 18- near its lowereiid. Similarly a ringer no-tch- 22 may be provided 'at the upper end of the o-utlet branch of the chute to 'permitrof' pressing down upon the block designated 5 to cause it to pass the retaining elementI 20 and dropv into the receptacle or drawer 12 from which substantially it may be withdrawn, when the party or vehicle who has received a com# y mission returns and is prepared tota-ke hisA proper turn inthe reception of furtherV commission. In Vthis event obviously the A cardl'or block` thus withdrawn' from the vreceptacle"12 should be `'replaced in theupper end offthe chute to drop into position `and v thereby show the order in which he will fol.`

low his vpredecessors in that connection.

iio

'Y that is claimed is:

I It is found in practice particularly in factories, that much confusion may be avoided 1n designating the men to successively per-1 form duties Where, for example, the even' distribution of the commission is necessary to Aavoid shlrking on Vthe one hand or al tendencyto claim ay commission out of order and to the disadvantage of another Work-y man or employee on the other hand', to employ a. definite mechanical means. for indicating the proper sequence, and the device described, which can' be constructed at la minimum cost and maintained at practically "no expense,` is' especially adapted for this plllpOSe.

l; A number board' having-fa vertical vlguide, provided' lat its lower end with an ofi'- vset outletuforming a seatjv and having in its front 'wa-1l. a n display slot, distinguishably designated objects 'for successive progressive vmovement through saidA guide7V and means at Y .,the'vinlet'; and outlet ends of theV` guide for preventing reverse or retrograde movement of said objects.

2. A number board having an upright easing provided with a guide having a front display slot, and a hollowv base provided with a movable receptacle or drawer in'comj munication With the lower end ot said guide,

the guide being provided with a lower outlet end offset. from the line oit' the body portion of the same vto provide a sea-tj' and the front Wall of said guide being provided near the plane of said seat` and in aligm'nent with said outlet with finger notches, V'distinguish ably designated' objects-for progressive suc-y cessive movement through said-guide, and

ALBERT T. GAY. 

